How to Fix a Loose Dryer Tumbler

Open the Dryer Cabinet

• 1

  Disconnect your dryer from the power source by unplugging it from the wall or turning off the correct breaker in the main circuit breaker panel box.

• 2

  Pull the lint screen from the top of the dryer to expose the two screws holding the top of the dryer to the cabinet. Dryers with in-door lint screens will not have the two screws in the top of the cabinet.

• 3

  Measure a distance of 1 inch in from the top-front corners of the dryer cabinet to locate the cabinet clips. Insert a 1 1/2-inch wide putty knife into the horizontal seam between the top of the cabinet and the bottom cabinet at the 1-inch mark.

• 4

  Push in on the putty knife to release the top of the dryer from the clip. Lift the top of the dryer up and rest it against the laundry room wall.

• 5

  Reach inside the front of the dryer cabinet to find the wire harness connecting the door switch to the control panel. Pull the harness apart. Some dryers use wire connectors to attach the door switch to the panel. Pull the connectors off the dryer switch terminals.

• 6

  Remove the screws from the front corners of the dryer cabinet. Lift the front of your dryer cabinet up and off the remainder of the cabinet.

Replace the Drum Glides

• 7

  Remove the screws holding the front bulkhead to the dryer cabinet. The bulkhead supports the front of the dryer tumbler. Lift the bulkhead out of the slots in the front of the cabinet and off the dryer.

• 8

  Lay the bulkhead on a stable surface with the front of the bulkhead facing down. Locate the two drum glides at the bottom of the bulkhead at about the five and seven o’clock positions.

• 9

  Pry the original glides from the metal glide brackets. Slide a flathead screwdriver beneath the glides if you can’t pry them from the brackets with your fingers. Insert the replacement glides into the slots on the glide brackets.

• 10

  Replace the bulkhead back onto the front of the cabinet. Lift the tumbler to ensure the glides are beneath the tumbler before you secure the bulkhead to the cabinet with the screws you removed previously. Reverse the cabinet opening instructions to reassemble the dryer.

Replace Drum Support Rollers

• 11

  Reach beneath the dryer drum to locate the dryer belt pulley next to the dryer motor. Push the belt pulley toward the motor to create slack in the drum belt.

• 12

  Pull the belt off the pulley, and then off the motor pulley. Grab the front of the dryer tumbler with one hand and lift the tumbler from the dryer cabinet by using the belt as a handle.

• 13

  Loosen the screw holding the bottom support roller bracket to the floor of the dryer cabinet. Grab the bracket with your fingers to pull the top of the bracket from the roller shaft.

• 14

  Pry the triangular clips from the bottom roller shaft with a flathead screwdriver or the putty knife. Slide the bottom roller from the shaft. Pry the clips from the remaining drum roller and pull the roller from the shaft.

• 15

  Pull the triangle clips from the shafts that were located behind the rollers. Insert the new clips from the replacement roller kit onto the shafts.

• 16

  Slide the new rollers onto the shafts. Secure the rollers to the shafts with the remaining two clips from the roller kit. Push the bottom roller bracket back onto the bottom roller shaft. Tighten the bracket screw to the bottom of the dryer cabinet.

• 17

  Lift the dryer tumbler back into the dryer. Reattach the drum belt to the belt pulley and the motor pulley. Rotate the tumbler clockwise to realign the drum belt.

• 18

  Reverse the cabinet opening instructions to reassemble the dryer.